EMN conference results in recommendations to activate the fight against smuggling in a holistic way
On 12-13 January, the EMN conference gathered over 200 participants to provide impetus for the implementation of the EU Action Plan against Smuggling. The conference resulted in concrete recommendations to better address migrant smuggling.
EMN Conference: Promoting the multidisciplinary approach in addressing migrant smuggling:
The conference brought together 200 experts from different fields (e.g. law enforcement, migration) from in total 24 different EU Member States, EU institutions and agencies, intergovernmental organisations (IGOs), academic and research institutions, nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and other experts.
Participants made concrete proposals on a variety of themes during interactive workshops:
- Strengthening the exchange of information and intelligence on migrant smuggling.
- Dismantling organized criminal networks involved in migrant smuggling: understanding the financial schemes used by smuggling networks.
- Innovative ways to tackle migrant smuggling: social media and predictive analysis.
- Engaging the private sector in the fight against migrant smuggling: transport and shipping
- Development of effective information and prevention campaigns on the risks of smuggling and counter-narratives in third countries.
- Development of comprehensive responses to migrant smuggling, addressing push and pull factors.
The recommendations made will be used to formulate Council conclusons on migrant smuggling, to be adopted during the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 10-11 March 2016. The recommendations will be made available shortly.
The official report of the conference is attached.
For more information on the conference, please visit the website of the Netherlands EU Presidency 2016.
Background information:
The fight against migrant smuggling has been a key part of the EU common migration policy for more than a decade. However the mounting scale of the problem has spurred new action at the EU level to prevent and fight migrant smuggling. This is reflected in the European Agenda on Migration and the European Agenda on Security, both of which identify the fight against migrant smuggling as a top priority. Furthermore, the EU Action Plan against migrant smuggling 2015-2020 sets out a number of concrete actions to better address this transnational crime by ensuring adequate investigation and prosecution, enhancing information gathering, sharing and analysing, preventing migrant smuggling and protection vulnerable migrants more effectively, and step up cooperation with third countries of transit and origin.